Why High Volume Low Calorie Foods Are Good For Health And Losing Weight

Updated on July 16, 2014

Key To Maintaining Healthy Weight or Losing Fat

Why do people gain fat and become unhealthy? Well, there are several reasons, but one of the main reasons is because some people tend to eat low volume high calorie foods. They should instead be eating high volume low calorie foods.

The main reason why a person ends up gaining fat is because they are in a consistent calorie surplus and/or are not very active. However, it's important to understand how they got into a calorie surplus in the first place. Yes, things like metabolism play a role, but I will not dwell on that subject in this particular article.

Eating foods that are higher in volume with fewer calories significantly reduces the chance of being in a calorie surplus. Eating these types of foods also leaves a person filling more satisfied, thus, the person will likely eat less overall.

Fruits and Vegetables

Fruits and Vegetables are an excellent example of high volume low calorie foods. Many of them also contain many essential vitamins. These are the types of foods that will leave a person filling more full and satisfied. They can also eat more of these types of foods because they are lower in calories. Why are they lower in calories? Because they are made up of mostly carbohydrates and have less fat. 1 gram of fat equals 9 calories, whereas, 1 gram of a carbohydrate equals to only 4 calories. That may not sound like a big difference, but when you account everything a person eats throughout the day/week/month it can make a significant difference.

What about the sugar in fruit, though? Isn't that unhealthy? It's important to understand that nearly anything in a persons diet can be detrimental to their health if they have too much. The sugar in fruit will not be detrimental to a person's health unless they have an overabundance of it.

Sugar is a type of carbohydrate that gives the body energy. The type of sugar that comes from fruit is known as fructose. It is a natural sugar.

Some examples of fruit to eat are apples, oranges, strawberries, peaches, pineapples, and watermelons. A few examples of vegetables to eat are pees, corn, tomatoes, potatoes, and spinach.

Do You Prefer Chicken or Steak?

Lean Chicken and Steak

Steak and chicken breast can potentially be good foods to eat that are high in volume and low in calories. Fried chicken that is bought from places like Kentucky Fried Chicken is not the healthiest, as it has significantly higher fat content and is greasy. But some types of chicken that are lower in fat content can be excellent to eat. There is a lot of protein in chicken breast. Protein can help keep you feeling full and satisfied. There is also a lot of protein in steak, and of course, it's another food that will keep you more full throughout the day.

Note, although some steak may have higher fat content, it has no carb content, so the amount of calories may not be that high overall. I'll give a personal example. There are these 5 oz sirloin steaks that I can get a for a good price at a store. One steak has a total of 250 calories in it with 25 grams of protein. That is relatively low in calories overall, but you still get a very high amount of protein.

Look at the nutrition facts before buying chicken. There are many types of chicken out there. Some are more healthy than others. Generally speaking, chicken from restaurants will be breaded and may contain higher amounts of fat (especially saturated fat). Of course this depends on the type of restaurant you go to and what you order.

Foods High in Water and Fiber.

Foods that are high in water and fiber add bulk (volume) to a person's meals. Foods containing water, air, or fiber have fewer calories than other foods. These types of foods can potentially stretch the stomach and empty it slower. This is why fruits and vegetables were mentioned earlier in the article; they contain more water and fiber.

People who are on a restrictive diet often get hungry because they are eating fewer calories. If they eat more meals that are high in volume, low in calories, and contain more water and fiber, then they will have a much easier time losing weight.

Even if a person is not in a calorie deficit, eating high volume low calorie foods is still very beneficial to prevent future weight gain.

Healthy Foods Can Still Lead To Fat Gain

What is fundamentally important to understand is that even foods that are healthy can lead to fat gain if a person over indulges in them. If someone eats ridiculous amounts of high volume low calorie foods, and they are in a calorie surplus everyday, then they will gain fat. However, the fat gains would be less likely to occur compared to someone eating high calorie low volume food.